The Life of Rick Sanchez
by Literaturefangirl
Summary: A look into Rick's adolescent life during the 1960's.
1. The 'Pool' Party

Most of the questions that kids ask their parents have something to do with science.

Why is the sky blue? Are we the only life in the universe? And where do babies come from? Actually, that one's a different kind of science, but you get the picture.

My school mates, if you can call them that, don't really care about science like I do. They just want to collect troll dolls and baseball cards, get good enough grades and make some friends. But who needs friends anyway? They're just distractions from what really matters; science.

It's too bad, _Father_ doesn't agree. When he can be bothered to talk with me. All he cares about is the slow growing economy and what it means for the company he's keeping the books for.

I told him it wasn't money that sent the first American into space. It was the scientists that did the math. Technically, money did buy the parts to make the rocket, but Father didn't like me being a smart ass, so he gave mine a beating with his belt. Now it hurts to sit on it.

My butt ached a little as I walked to school today. But at least I had science class today. I could forget about my worries and sore backside, there for a while.

"Noble gasses are a family of elements named after the fact that they are unreactive to other elements. Can anyone name them for me?" The teacher; Mrs. Fischer asked the class, who didn't look very interested in what she had to say.

"Emperon!" A kid from the class yelled out, without raising his hand, making the class laugh and annoying Mrs. Fischer.

"That's not an element, Tom. Can anyone _else_ identify what the noble gasses are?"

"Argon, xenon, neon, krypton, oganesson, helium and radon!" I quickly recite, after the teacher gives me permission to answer. An easy trick since I memorized the periodic table.

"Very good, Rick." Mrs. Fischer praised me and talked for the rest of the class about the properties and applications of the noble gasses.

After class was over, I sat at an empty table at the back of the cafeteria where no one would bother me and sipped from my carton of milk. It didn't work entirely, because a girl from my science class called Nancy went up to my table and talked to me anyway. She's a nice girl and one of the few people who takes her studies seriously, so I was glad when she came.

"Hey Rick, are you going to Tom's party today? I heard he's going to play some tracks with his new record player." Nancy asked excitedly with a cute smile, putting me off guard.

"Uh…"

"Tom said he was inviting a bunch of people from school and I was wondering if I'd see you there." Nancy explained, pushing a strand of her wavy, blonde hair behind her ear, making my heart flutter.

"I didn't get an invitation." I break it to her. I'm not usually interested in parties, but now that she's told me, I suddenly am.

"Don't sweat it! You can come with me." Nancy reassured me, putting a grin on my face.

Thoughts of spending time with Nancy at the party stayed with me for the rest of the day, until the school day was over. We agreed to meet up at Tom's house, which is just a few blocks away from my house, after changing out of our school uniforms.

Once we were both there, my eyes couldn't help but be drawn towards Nancy. Red headband in her hair, pretty purple dress, she was a real beauty.

"You look… great." I tell her with a smile. My usually intelligent brain failing to come up with a better adjective to describe Nancy.

"Thanks, Rick!" She accepted my weak compliment (thankfully) and smiled back. We danced together to the beat of the music playing from Tom's record, until I got hungry and headed to the kitchen to help myself to some snacks provided on the kitchen table.

But before I could even grab a handful of chips, Tom's older brother Larry walked up to me and offered me a plate of delicious looking brownies.

"Don't have any of those snacks, have a brownie instead. I baked them _myself_."

"Thanks!" I took one and bit into it. It tasted really weird, but I felt grateful that Larry had shared something he had baked himself with me.

I lost track of Nancy after that and danced with some other people from my school, but after a while I started feeling nauseated and what I can only describe as 'floaty', like my mind was rising towards the ceiling. I looked across the room in a panic, trying to find anything that could anchor my thoughts and ground me in reality. I saw my mom standing by the pool in the backyard, waving at me. It made me feel all giddy inside. The thought of a warm hug from her, made me smile as I walked towards her.

As I walked across the yard, my footsteps felt heavy, like I was wearing shoes made of iron, but eventually I reached the spot where I thought I saw my mom, but she wasn't there anymore. I felt my feet tripping, sending me falling into the pool. Everything was cold, as the weight of the water made my body slowly sink. My head felt like it was going to burst, but I just couldn't find the strength to move my arms. I could feel someone pulling me up by my shirt. Were they taking me to heaven?

"What do you think you're doing, Sanchez?! This isn't a pool party!" Larry yelled at me, after dragging me out of the pool, as I coughed to expel the water from my lungs.

"But I-I was feeling bad..." I stuttered, as I wiped my eyes. Feeling grateful that Larry would think my eyes were irritated from the pool water and not from my own tears.

"You're a mess, Sanchez. Go home." Larry ordered me to leave.

Since I had no choice, I agreed quietly and went out the back door. Leaving without even saying goodbye to Nancy. Despite it being a warm summer's day, I shivered as I walked home.

I don't know what happened after that or if I even made it back home after I blacked out, but the next thing I remembered, I was in my own bed. Mom was looking at me with a concerned look on her face, she had been crying too.

"What happened to you, sweetie? When I came home, I found you asleep on the side of the road in front of our house. I was so worried about you!"

"Tom's big brother gave me a brownie and it made feel weird and then I fell in the pool." Mom stroked my hair softly, after I told her everything.

"I-I thought I was going to die, Mom." I choked on my words, as I realized how close I had come to death today.

"Shhh, shhh. It's okay, Rick. Mommy's here." Mom wiped the tears falling down my cheeks and pulled me into a tight hug.

* * *

 **After I drew teenage Rick (the story cover) the observations of Rick's bright, young teen self just spoke to me in my mind! Giving me the idea to write a chapter told through his perspective.**

 **I'll be writing the second chapter in third person (this was an experiment), but in the meantime reviews would be appreciated.**


	2. The Science Fair

Sleep, Rick Sanchez thought, was the only time his mind would be spared from dwelling on the harrowing events that had transpired at Tom's party. It was a pity his brain didn't entirely agree.

In his dream, the brownie he had carelessly eaten sprouted legs and morphed into anthropomorphic being, pushing Rick into pool. The weight of his descent, feeling like he was being sucked into a black hole and was enough to leave Rick gasping for air and running out his bedroom to escape the dream tormenting him.

Having put distance between himself and his room, Rick rigidly stood in place in a defensive stance as if bracing for another attack. But the night terror was over and all Rick wanted to do was tell his mother what had happened.

No, he couldn't burden her with that. She'd be tired the next day if he woke her up now, not to mention getting an earful from his old man if he burst into their room.

So, with a sick feeling still in his gut and his heart racing like he'd run a marathon, Rick returned to his bed and hoped that sleep would be peaceful for him this time.

Unfortunately, the uninterrupted sleep did little to improve Rick's mood the next day. If even his dreams were against him, why should he bother putting effort in his classes? Or anything for that matter?

"Who can tell me how a covalent bond is formed? Rick, would you like to take this one?" Mrs. Fischer asked the class, but addressed Rick first to speed things along, since he was one of the few students who showed interest in the class material.

"Not really." Rick answered honestly. Back slouched and head propped on his arm, sending a clear message of indifference.

Since this was the first time that she had seen Rick behave in such a way, Mrs. Fischer let it slide this one time.

"It's when an atom steals electrons from another atom!" A student spoke up without raising their hand. But since their knowledge was only a little jumbled and they were so enthusiastic with their answer, Mrs. Fischer did not scold the interruption.

"You were close! But not quite there yet. Anyone else want to give it a shot?"

"That's easy. It's when atoms _share_ electrons." Tom answered with confidence, as if he was compensating for his previous outburst about a fake periodic element.

"Well done Tom. I see _someone's_ been doing their homework. I hope it will show in your entry to the science fair next week." Mrs. Fischer praised Tom, which only served in boosting his ego and lowering Rick's spirits.

After class was over, Rick sought refuge in the one place he would be left alone; the library.

Sitting between two book shelves, with his back against the wall and his head buried in a book about nuclear physics, Rick was certain that he'd be able to spend his entire lunch in solitude. Were it not for the interventions of a concerned young lady.

"Rick, I know it's you. I can see your hair poking out." Nancy called Rick out on his effort to conceal himself with an annoyed tone. Which did nothing to convince him to lower his book.

"Why did you bail on me at the party, yesterday?" Nancy asked, refusing to drop the subject despite Rick continuing to not lower his guard.

"I-I don't owe you an explanation!" Rick stuttered, as his eyes began getting misty with tears just thinking about what had happened.

When Nancy got the hint that Rick was never going to lower the book himself, she took it from his hands herself. But when she saw Rick avoiding her gaze, her priorities soon changed.

"Rick… tell me what happened."

"Tom's brother gave me a laced brownie and it made me fall in the pool." Rick gave up the secret had had been guarding so closely and quickly wiped his eyes so Nancy wouldn't notice.

"That's awful! You could have drowned." Nancy exclaimed, making Rick relieved that she was doing all the talking that needed to be said, when he had no desire to say it himself.

"Did you tell anyone about this?" Nancy asked with urgency, hoping that there had been someone that Rick was able to turn to for help.

"I told my mom, but it's not like she could do anything about it." Rick told Nancy with a defeated voice, conveying how little he thought anything could be done.

"She could tell the school!" Nancy suggested, recalling the authority teachers had in resolving issues between students.

"And have Larry always on my back? No, thanks." Rick dismissed Nancy's idea, thinking ahead of the consequences of snitching.

"That's a bummer! But at least we can work on our science fair inventions together." Nancy sighed, before being interrupted by the school bell.

"Or not. I'll see you at the science fair, Nancy." Rick quickly accepted their time together being cut short and gave Nancy his goodbyes.

The day of the science fair had finally arrived, and though Rick had spent very little time whipping an invention up, Nancy did not have a stall to show off her invention at all. She was going to have to take to the stage of the school auditorium and present her invention with her public presentation skills alone, with the help of her assistant standing next to her holding a jar.

"Up next is Nancy Misiks, with an invention that could change the world!" The fair presenter announced Nancy's entry.

Standing on the stage with her brother holding a cookie jar by her side, Nancy introduced her brother. Including his faults. "This is my brother Arthur, he steals from the cookie jar all the time."

"No, I don't!" Nancy's little brother denied it and stared at her accusingly.

"Shut up, Artie! I'm not done!" Nancy snapped with a threatening whisper and continued.

"But if I give him this pill, it temporarily makes him a better, and honest person." Nancy held up a tiny pill between two fingers for everyone to see and gave it to Arthur for him to swallow. The crowd watching with curious anticipation to see what would happen next.

"I do steal from the cookie jar! But you can have this one." Arthur confessed and took a cookie from the jar and gave it to Nancy, before farting very loudly.

"The side effects, unfortunately give the subject a bad case of gas. I'm still working out the kinks." Nancy informed the crowd sheepishly, her face turning red.

Some of the adults in the crowd reluctantly clapped, so as to not appear impolite, but it was Rick himself who gave the loudest applause, putting the biggest smile on Nancy's face.

The last entry for the fair was Rick's invention, which was around the size of a light bulb and placed on a table with a cup of coffee next to it.

"My invention for the science fair, is a mini nuclear reactor." Rick introduced the concept of his invention and pressed a button, zapping the coffee and sending a trail of steam billowing upwards.

"It's pretty self-explanatory what it does. BURP! _Excuse me_. I had to test if it worked several times and drank the coffee each time."

"Is it safe?" Someone called out, concerned by the implications of the invention's power source.

"Right now, i-it could only heat a cup of coffee, but with some upgrades, this puppy could power a whole house someday!" Rick boasted, making the audience erupt with applause.

"Looks like we have a winner on our hands!" The presenter announced her biased opinion and pinned a ribbon to Rick's blue sweater.

And a first-place winner Rick was! With a prestigious blue ribbon to show for it. As Rick admired his prize, a man wearing a dark suit and sunglasses, tapped Rick on the shoulder from behind.

"I work with the C.I.A, son. If you ever invent more powerful inventions on a larger scale, then give me a call. We'll talk." The C.I.A agent offered Rick a business card.

"No thanks, I don't trust the fuzz." Rick refused to take the card and walked away towards his father's parked car.

"I'm not with the police." The agent clarified, confused why Rick wasn't taking his offer.

"Who cares? It doesn't make a difference. I don't respect authority figures." Rick rebuffed the man and got into his father's car.

"Hey Dad, I won the science fair today!" Rick smiled and puffed out his chest a little, hoping his father would notice the bright, blue first place ribbon pinned to his sweater.

"So have many kids before you." Rick's father downplayed his accomplishment.

"But Dad, aren't you proud that _I_ achieved something?" Rick wouldn't let the matter drop, desperately craving for approval that his father never gave him

"Is winning the science fair going to put money on the table?" Rick's father posed Rick a question, always focused on money.

"Maybe?"

"Then it doesn't matter in the end, does it? It's only a tiny blip in the grand scheme of things." Mr. Sanchez finished the discussion, with a finality that made Rick's spirit sink. The science fair had been Rick's big chance to prove to his father that he was worthy of praise, but not even a ribbon had been enough to convince him.

"Yes, Father…"

The next day Rick's father went to work and presented his findings about the company's financials to his colleagues.

"This graph represents the company's growth during the last year." Rick's father pointed to a chart on a stand with an arrow going up, indicating big profits.

"And this downturn right here, shows how bad of a father I became when I told my son his science fair invention didn't matter. Did I say that out loud?" Mr. Sanchez asked out loud and let out a loud fart in the presence of his superiors.

Back at school, Rick and Nancy were reveling in thinking about the potential of Nancy's invention.

"It's too bad your pills only make people susceptible to hypnotic suggestions. Otherwise you'd make a killing selling these!" Rick fantasized how much money Nancy could make with her pills, if they were more potent than making people tell the truth.

"I guess so, but the best we can do now is hope people become nicer on their own."

"You wouldn't need to take any Nancy, you're nice enough as it is." Rick payed Nancy a compliment, letting his friend know her worth.

"Awww, gee! Thanks, Rick!" Nancy cocked her head and thanked Rick with a sweet smile.

* * *

 **With the conclusion of this chapter, Rick's dad finally gets what he deserved! Thanks for reading and don't forget to leave a review! The next chapter will be set around the time the Vietnam war started.  
**


	3. Pain in the Draft

[This is a slightly older Rick, please picture him with a fringe across the right side of his face. Like the clone in the Tiny Rick episode.]

In the urine-stenched boy's bathroom of his school, Rick lathered his hands with soap. Letting his thoughts drift away, as he rinsed them above a bathroom sink. Not bothering to look up, when he heard the footsteps of a student entering.

Hands now clean, Rick pulled a paper towel from a dispenser and dried his hands, when a pungent, but familiar smell entered his nostrils; the smell of tobacco. It was an ever-present stink at his house, since his father made it a habit of sitting in his arm chair in the living room and smoking. And though he was of age to purchase cigarettes, he never cared for the stuff to buy them himself.

"Hey Rick, you want a smoke?" The voice of the student behind him responsible for the unwelcome smell, called out to Rick.

"No, thanks. I don't conform to our society's habit of smoking." Rick faced the shaggy haired boy holding a packet of cigarettes, and turned down his offer.

"So what, you're think you're above smoking like the rest of us?"

"That's not what I said, Jack." Rick objected with a firm, yet calm voice, to avoid setting off the boy who was becoming agitated.

"Really? Because it sounded a lot like you were saying you were better than us." Jack accused Rick and stepped towards him, thinking it would intimidate him.

"Why don't you hit the road, _Jack_? I'm not interested. So, stop projecting your insecurities on to me, okay?" Rick stood his ground and told Jack to back off, hoping to avoid getting into a fight before lunch was up. Since the teacher would not look favourably upon him, if he walked in his classroom with a black eye and a bloody nose.

"Prove it then."

"W-what?"

"Prove that you're not too good for cigarettes by smoking one." Jack clarified, with a voice that sounded like Rick didn't have a choice. He didn't want it to have to come to this, but if it prevented the situation from escalating, then it was a necessary evil.

"Fine! But I'm only doing it because I'm open to new life experiences and haven't smoked before." Rick snatched an already lit cigarette from Jack's hand, and put it to his lips, sucking in the smoke and inhaling it until the acrid smoke reached his lungs.

The smoke felt hot on his lungs. Like a warm blanket wrapped around them, squeezing the precious air out.

How long was he supposed to keep the smoke in for? Rick had no idea. Would Jack think he was a chicken if he exhaled too soon? Or would he look stupid standing there and holding the smoke in too long? Rick didn't have to think about it too hard, because his lungs soon provided an answer, making him cough the bitter cocktail of chemicals out of them.

It was a relief to rid his lungs of the horrible smoke, and fill them with an invigorating breath of air. The tightness was gone and Rick could breathe properly again, but Jack didn't see it that way.

"Ha! You can't even smoke a cigarette right!"

"It doesn't matter. Because I'm done with you and your dumb cigarettes, Jack." Rick left the bathroom and joined up with his friend Stanley, who was waiting outside the entrance of the boy's bathrooms.

"Took you long enough." Stanley smirked and walked with Rick as they headed to their lockers. But there was something different about Rick had returned from the bathroom. He looked defeated and barely laughed when Stanley told him a dirty joke. Walking close to Rick, Stanley's nose picked up on a foul odour that lingered on Rick's clothes and breath. He frowned when he considered what it could mean.

"What did you do in there? Start a fire? You smell like a chimney." Stanley joked, hoping it would defuse the accusation he had just made to start the conversation.

"Jack wouldn't leave me alone and made me smoke a cigarette."

"You should have kicked his ass!" Stanley protested, knowing that Rick was no stranger to getting into fights and _winning_ them.

"You think I didn't want to teach that little turd a lesson? Believe me, I would have. But my parents have been on edge lately, and the last thing I need is them being called to the principal's office."

But before Stanley could reply, an obnoxious yell echoed throughout the school hall.

"Hey, look! It's Rick the vampire! How did you get to school today, Rick? I thought your kind burned in the sunlight."

The voice belonged to a sandy haired boy called Matthew, who amused himself by often teasing Rick about his unusual complexion. The irony lost on the boy who sported a pale sunglasses shaped contour on his face.

"Isn't that what happens to assholes like you, who don't wear sunblock? Since you know, vampires don't exist?" Rick retorted with a comeback, that made Matthew grumble from being bested at the battle of words.

"Good one." Stanley high-fived Rick and opened his locker, right before the school bell rang.

After the school day had ended, Rick returned home and was about to enter the house, when a man dressed in a suit decorated with medals addressed him.

"Rick Sanchez?"

"No, I'm President Kennedy. What do you want?" Rick snapped, annoyed by the officer's intrusion by showing up on his doorstep.

"We've been informed that you have not registered to serve in the army since turning eighteen. It is your duty as a U.S citizen to serve your country in times of war." The officer handed him a letter, detailing Rick's requirement to register for the military draft.

"I'll be right back." Rick excused himself and entered his house. Making it seem like he had blown the officer off, but he soon returned with his father's cigarette lighter.

"This is what I think of your draft."

Rick locked eyes with the officer with a neutral expression, and lit the letter on fire and watched the flames slowly burn the paper until the whole thing had crumbled into a pile of ash at his feet. Spitting on the paper to add insult to injury.

"I'm never going to sign up to become one of Uncle Sam's little foot soldiers, so don't even think about coming back to our house again." Rick warned the officer and slammed the door in his face, on his way inside the house.

When Rick entered the living room, he was greeted by a warm welcome from his mother, "How was your day, honey?" Mrs. Sanchez brushed Rick's long fringe away from his eyes and kissed him on the cheek.

"Oh, you know, spirit crushing as usual."

"Rick! What have I told you about staying positive?" Rick's mother told him off, without sounding too stern. Always hoping that her cynical son would improve his outlook on life.

"That I should watch TV with you to be happy?" Rick angled a proposition, so he could watch TV with his mother. She gave him a wry smile and they sat on the couch to watch an episode of a new science fiction show called 'Star Trek', in which aliens kept humans in captivity in the hopes that they would breed.

"Boy, I sure hope aliens never come to Earth and lock us up in menageries like that one. That would be really hard to escape." Rick remarked, after the episode ended. Making his mother laugh with his sense of humour.

* * *

 **I watched Big Trouble in Little Sanchez again, and when I saw that clone with the fringe in one of the vats, I thought it was a shame that I didn't write about Rick's** _ **late**_ **teens. So, there it is! 18-year-old Rick rejecting enlistment for the Vietnam War, please leave a review and let me know what you thought of it.  
**

 **It was also a happy coincidence that the Star Trek pilot matched the menagerie memory in Morty's Mindblowers.**


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